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[Blades64]

no, look, imagine you pull out the Wii U on thanksgiving and pop in NintendoLand for the first time to play with your family. but, oh wait, you can't play all the modes because you have to unlock a bunch of them. that's annoying.

I don't think anyone was complaining when Rock Band 3 had the full song list unlocked from day one so you didn't have to endlessly grind the game to get more music. For a party game like that, you want all your options day one. I think most party games get this now, which is why they've probably called it dated. I'm prepared to grind NintendoLand to get the unlocks that are important to me, but that's exactly what it's going to be.

Putting things like game modes behind RANDOMISED unlock systems is dumb.

and let me put on my Amirox translation hat. where he is saying 'shallow' imagine he's using an equivalent but not pejorative term instead. Like 'instantly accessible'. his points are all valid if you take out the loaded term.

I would argue that some of the games in NintendoLand do not look shallow at all, but then I'd argue that Bowling and Golf in Wii Sports weren't either. I don't think costume unlocks add depth to a game, personally. I don't need any more reason to keep playing a game beyond it continuing to be fun.

Woe, you really did sound like Ami there. Hehe.

I see your point though. For a mini-game collection, maybe one would want all modes and features unlocked from the get go. Games like New Super Mario Bros. U on the other hand, I will enjoy unlocking all the secrets in that game and not have to worry about paying for DLC. I was so happy to read that the DLC they are planning to include is stuff that they just started working on.

 

[Skiesofwonder]

EDGE - 7/10

Could Nintendo have made similar cuts, sliced out singleplayer, and left us with the perfect party game? The shadow of missed opportunity occasionally looms over Nintendo Land, but as with any good theme park, there are moments where you’ll yell, scream and laugh yourself silly. Just add friends

Games Magazine - 7.3/10

At times like this, the game creeps beyond the trappings of a party game and into something else entirely. As we’ve come to expect from Nintendo, it’s nothing short of intoxicating, but there’s a lack of consistency and conviction in the product that is unusual for the Kyoto-based developer. A throw-it-all-at-the-wall approach that is uncharacteristically capricious.

When the game works, it’s one of the finest party games on offer, but Nintendo’s confusion in what it wants to achieve with the Wii U GamePad results in an erratic compilation short on hits.

Digital Spy - 4/5

Nintendo Land is a completely unique game unlike anything else available on other consoles, combining the way the Smash Bros. series tapped into Nintendo's history with the innovation of Wii Sports.

While it's true that some attractions are better than others - especially the multiplayer games - each individual offering provides a strong look at the Wii U's capabilities, whether it's hunting down familiar hero Mario as a team of four, or gently floating through the clouds by yourself.

 

[Skiesofwonder]

Arstechnia - try it

There’s a lot to like in Nintendo Land, from the appealing theme-park aesthetic to the cute, floating robotic guide; everything is presented with Nintendo’s usual care for great presentation. And there are a few minigame concepts that could easily sustain full games on their own, alongside a few more that are good enough for party time.

But in the end, Nintendo Land feels like a mixed grab-bag that never coalesces into more than the sum of its parts. Many of the minigames fall in that odd middle ground where they’re too complicated to explain in less than 30 seconds and not complicated enough to be interesting for much more than 10 minutes. As a first draft of Nintendo’s best ideas for what to do with the touchscreen GamePad, the results are less than inspiring.

Didn't seem to really like it.